A demon's heart
by Lifehousefanatic2011
Summary: My take on why Howl swallowed Calcifer. Howl had love in his heart and sadness for a life lost, if he could save it, so he did the only thing he thought of, and swallowed the demon to save it, abandoning his life he held before, and his apprenticeship.


**Hey guys, this is only a ****one-shot**** about why Howl thought it was a good idea to swallow a shooting star. I figured there had to be a reason he did it, and not just because he was not smart enough to see any potential dangers from it. **

10 year old Howl sat in his study in the little cottage that hid in the wide fields of grass. He had sprinkled magic across it earlier that day, to make some flowers grow. He thought it would be a beautiful addition to the landscape. He would continue to do that for some time, until he had lots of fully grown flowers all over the field. He pulled out another book, this one about the many different types of demons, a book his uncle himself had written. Howl was an avid reader, and he was always anxious to learn more when he was young. He was very happy to become Solomon's apprentice only a few months ago. He had been playing around and guards had seen some of his magical demonstrations, and took him to Solomon to be dealt with. Solomon was keeping a closer eye on the world of magic, witches and wizards were showing less restraint and exposing a dangerous and non restrained side of it, and she was watching for these kinds of behaviors all over her city.

Howl had been taken to her glass office, and she had talked to him. He had shown her some of the little things his uncle had taught him to do, and she was intrigued by the talent in such a young boy. Solomon being the person she was, decided to take him on has her last apprentice. She saw potential she could be known for harnessing, for making the next head sorcerer for his majesty. Howl went to see her for a few hours a day and would master a spell or two, and then come home where he could indulge himself in reading.

Outside his little cottage the sky began flaring beautiful colors, and shooting stars fell from the sky. This was something new to Howl, he had not seen it before. The stars landed right around the house too, and he watched as the little people came from the stars and would run across the ground before fading away. His curiosity was aroused and he looked back at his uncle's hand written book he had created using information he had gathered from other various wizards he had met. His uncle had possibly held a record for meeting the most other witches and wizards in the world, so the book was quite insightful. Howl flipped through his book to see if perhaps the little people that came from the stars were a form of demon. A few moments after he started looking he found them.

_Shooting stars are a form of demon. They are quite helpless and most of them do not live. They are pure flame, that being so, once they hit the uncooperative grounds of earth, they die out. Unless they are given something to live off of. _

_ These particular demons are famous for stealing the eyes or something else from wizards in order to survive. As with many demons, they are tricky, but the fire demons that live from the stars are more concerned on living. _

Howl looked out the window and saw all the stars falling from the sky. All those little demons. He went out and walked across the field. One started falling right in front of him. Howl made the decision that he wanted to speak to it, and he caught the shooting star before it hit the ground.

"Hi fire demon. I'm a wizard. You can call me Howl."

"I'm so tired. I don't want to die Howl. I just want to live. Don't let me die. Please Howl."

"I don't want to let you die. How can I help you?"

"I need something from you. I can't live by myself here, not now. I'm too tired from the trip down here from the skies."

"How could I give you something like that?" Howl looked at the innocent seeming fire man fluttering around in his hands. He struck an idea, maybe he could take some blood from inside him if he swallowed it. "What's your name?"

"Calcifer, and I'm a great and powerful fire demon!"

"I think I have an idea Calcifer. Anything of mine should help you right?"

"Yes. I think."

"I'll help you live, and then you can stay with me and help me around the cottage, or I have had an idea to make a moving castle, and you could help me power it. Since you're a great and powerful fire demon." Calcifer nodded, too tired to speak again.

Howl smiled and put the little demon to his mouth and swallowed it. He started coughing then, his chest was exploding with the most intense burning he had ever felt. He put his hands to his chest, and felt the heat, and then he felt Calcifer in his hands, as a little fire.

"Are you saved then?"

"Yes. Now about this castle of yours?" Howl held Calcifer in his hand and started walking off back to the cottage. Everything went well until Calcifer tried to leave, he had only wanted to take a quick run into the sky, but he was unable to leave, and they didn't understand why.

Something Howl had skipped when he was reading, however, was that when a deal is made with a fire demon, unless the demon gives back his part of the bargain, they are bound to each other, and since neither Calcifer or Howl had know it was his heart that was traded, they were bound until they figured it out.

Howl had thought he would take whatever would be easiest, or most plentiful, but in a demon's hungry nature to become stronger, it will absorb the thing that makes it most powerful, in Howl's case, it was his heart.

Howl and Calcifer built the moving castle, and Howl never even thought about his apprenticeship. He finished growing up with Calcifer, but Solomon did find out through the grape vine she had created that Howl had lost his heart to a demon.

A few years later Howl did realize it was his heart he had lost, but neither of the two understood that it was what was keeping them bound together. And it was not until it was returned that they could be free, until Sophie saved Howl, that they would both be free again.

**The end. Didn't quite come out the way I had planned, but never the less, it's out of my head now. Hope you liked. Bye for now!**


End file.
